US Authorities Consider Dismissing Fraud Cases Against Gautam Adani

US Authorities May Drop Fraud Charges Against Indian Billionaire Gautam Adani

The US authorities are reportedly moving to resolve the fraud charges against Gautam Adani, India's richest person, according to people familiar with the matter. This development aims to bring an end to a criminal case that has been pending for over a year.

The Justice Department may announce the decision to drop the charges as soon as this week, said the people who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the confidential nature of the matter. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is also working to settle a parallel civil fraud case it brought against Adani and others in November 2024.

Ending the cases would be a significant boost to the Adani Group, one of India's most powerful companies, with diverse interests ranging from coal mining to renewable energy and airports. This resolution would clear the decks for the conglomerate to return to international capital markets and resume its aggressive expansion strategy.

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While the Justice Department could potentially drop the charges with the defendants out of the country, a resolution to the SEC case is likely to involve a monetary penalty, according to some of the people.

The US Attorney's Office in Brooklyn declined to comment on the matter. Representatives for the SEC and the Adani Group did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Key Allegations and Timeline

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In November 2024, the US Attorney's Office in Brooklyn alleged in a five-count indictment that Adani and other defendants helped drive a $250 million bribery scheme in India to lock in solar-power contracts. The Adani Group has consistently denied the charges. None of the defendants, including Adani and his nephew Sagar, have appeared in court so far over the charges, effectively stalling the case.

The Justice Department alleged that Adani and others promised bribes to Indian government officials to win solar energy contracts and concealed the plan as they sought to raise money from US investors.

The SEC alleged in its parallel suit that Gautam Adani spearheaded an effort to pay or promise hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to Indian officials to induce them to enter contracts that Adani Green needed to develop India's largest solar power plant project.

While the Justice Department prosecution has been stalled with the Adanis not in the US, the SEC case had started to advance in court.

Earlier this year, Adani's lawyers filed papers arguing that the SEC's fraud case should be dismissed, saying that regulators lacked necessary jurisdiction over the two men and that the alleged misstatements underpinning the case weren't actionable.